Toad-In-The-Hole

Ever tried explaining Toad-in-the-Hole to someone who’s never heard of it? Their face goes from confused to slightly concerned when you mention there’s no actual toad involved. Gets me every time.

My grandmother would probably disown me for saying this, but I’ve found adding mayonnaise to the batter makes it rise better than her traditional recipe. Took me years to work up the courage to tell her. She grudgingly admitted it was good, then pretended we never had the conversation.

The real magic happens when that batter hits the scorching hot pan. That sizzle? That’s the sound of perfectly crispy edges forming. If you don’t hear it, your pan wasn’t hot enough – trust me, I learned this the hard way.

What You’ll Need

• 700g pork sausages
• Beef drippings (or oil)
• Eggs (measure them!)
• Plain flour
• Milk and water
• Mayonnaise (the secret weapon)
• Onions for the gravy
• Basic pantry items

Steps

1. Batter – Whisk eggs in a bowl, then whisk in flour until lump free. Whisk in water, milk, mayonnaise, salt and pepper. Place in the fridge until required.
2. Preheat oven to 220°C/425°F (200°C fan). Put the 1/4 cup beef drippings in a 23 x 33cm metal pan (9 x 13″). Place in the oven for 15 minutes to melt and become very hot.
3. Brown sausages – Heat the 2 tsp (10g) of drippings in a pan over medium high heat. Brown the sausages all over, but keep one side just lightly browned (this side will brown more in the oven). Keep them raw inside. Remove onto a plate.
4. Assemble – Take batter out of fridge and whisk. Working quickly, take the hot pan out of oven. Spread sausages in the pan, lightly browned side up, keeping clear of the pan walls. Pour the batter in around the sausages.
5. Bake – Bake 25 minutes on the top shelf until the sides puff up and is golden brown. The top of the edges should be nice and crispy!
6. Serve immediately with onion gravy! Expect some deflation – though far less than typical recipes thanks to the mayo.

Onion gravy:

1. Brown onion – Add beef drippings into the pan used for browning the sausages. Melt over high heat. Add onions and cook, stirring constantly, until nicely browned (~5 minutes). Add garlic and stir 30 seconds. Add flour and stir for 1 minute so it’s well mixed through the onions (= lump-free gravy!).
2. Add stock – Slowly pour in beef stock, stirring as you go. Add Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper.
3. Thicken – Bring to a simmer, stirring, for 2 minutes until thickens into a gravy. Keep warm until ready to use!

Substitutions That Actually Work

• Vegetarian sausages work fine – just watch the cooking time
• No beef drippings? Duck fat gives amazing results
• Gluten-free flour blend works, but reduce liquid by 2 tablespoons

Making It Diabetes-Friendly

• Use chicken sausages to reduce fat content
• Replace 1/4 cup of flour with almond flour
• Use unsweetened almond milk instead of whole milk

Tips & Storage

• Leftovers keep 2 days max – but honestly, there’s rarely any left
• The batter can be made 24 hours ahead
• Don’t open the oven while it’s cooking – you’ll deflate the pudding
• Always heat the pan until it’s smoking hot